NASA’s mailroom is overflowing with applications from teachers who want to become members of the Permanent Astronaut Corps. More than 1,100 completed applications are in the system. The Educator Astronaut Program (EAP) office is processing over 3,000 recommendations and transcripts that arrived during the last week of the recruitment phase.
“We’re seeing incredible letters of recommendation from students, parents, supervisors and community leaders,” said EAP co-manager, Debbie Brown Biggs. “All of these inspiring teachers have impressive resumes, some with six or seven transcripts, from their quest for knowledge and their desire to continue their own education as teachers,” Biggs said.
NASA will not have a final number of complete EAP applications until the end of May. Over the next few months, NASA will review the applications and select “Superior Educator” candidates, using criteria developed by a Blue Ribbon Panel.
The Blue Ribbon panel will be comprised of a diverse group of experts from the K-12 education community, outside of NASA, including representatives from the teaching profession and professional education associations.
“Superior Educator” applicants will be forwarded to the Astronaut Selection board at the Johnson Space Center (JSC), Houston. The board will identify the top finalists, then select three to six teachers to become Educator Astronauts in early 2004.
For information about EAP and how to get involved by joining the NASA Earth Crew, visit:
http://edspace.nasa.gov/
For more information about NASA education programs on the Internet, visit:
http://education.nasa.gov/